


Blackout

by orphan_account



Category: Apex Legends (Video Games)
Genre: Autistic Wattson | Natalie Paquette, DarkSparks, Disaster lesbian Wraith, F/F, Friends to Lovers, Mutual Pining, Set in Season 3, Slow Burn, i will ignore canon if i dont like it, minor self-harm, slight miroctane if you squint, wlw
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-23
Updated: 2020-10-21
Packaged: 2021-03-07 18:49:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 8
Words: 9,228
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26622433
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: "Renee." Natalie looked up in surprise, her breathing faltered for a moment. "My name. It's Renee.""Hello, Renee."**Edit: on hiatus due to burnout
Relationships: Crypto | Park Tae Joon & Wattson | Natalie Paquette, Mirage | Elliott Witt & Wraith | Renee Blasey, Wattson | Natalie Paquette & Wraith | Renee Blasey, Wattson | Natalie Paquette/Wraith | Renee Blasey
Comments: 8
Kudos: 88





	1. Cake

Wraith knew two things about herself. Her name and what happened to her. That hidden room blocked off by debris in the labs was a clear indicator of that. Elliott kicking the door in for shits and giggles may have helped that, but she wouldn't admit that to him. Maybe on her deathbed. Dr. Renee Blasey. That sounds foreign even in her own thoughts, but a name holds great weight in this world. Hyeun or Tae Joon or whatever his name really is told her that much. 

"Wraith, wait up!" Natalie called behind her, her triple take held securely to her chest as she ran to catch up. The electrician was red in the face from the hike across the Wetlands, but she kept that bright smile on her face. Wraith felt her face warm up and chalked it up to Solace's natural heat. "I'm not as fast as you. Can you slow down for me to keep up?"

"Right. Sorry." She apologized quickly, adjusting her scarf and bun before walking beside her teammate. She supposed she could take it slow. No warnings and no signs of people. Natalie messed with her bangs as she walked.

"Are you not hot wearing all those layers?" She asked with her free hand fanning herself. Her boots squelched as they entered a muddy area. Wraith's own shoes almost sank into the mud. 

"It doesn't bother me much." Natalie nodded, falling into an awkward silence.

Wraith looked at her in quick glances. This was the first time they were actually alone together in a squad without a third to keep conversation going with Natalie. It felt nice to be able to talk, or really walk in silence, with the electrician. She was always nice and cheerful and helpful. Wraith thought of her as a friend. A friend who isn't as talkative and showy as Elliott or, you know, a robot. 

"I was wondering," the blonde began, looking at Wraith expectantly. "Why did you join the games?"

Wraith paused. "I have my reasons." 

"That's cryptic." She chuckled awkwardly. "I figured you had joined for the same reason most did. Money. Fame. A bad bet."

"I'm not Mirage." That made Natalie laugh. Her smile lit up her entire face and Wraith felt hot again.

"Yes, he is a bit, er, much? Not pompous. What is the word?"

"A douchebag." Wraith offered, hopping over a concrete wall. A small building that used to be used as a relay station had a few stacks of energy ammo and a shotgun bolt. Nothing really useful. "Don't worry. He's more bark than bite. Anything he told you is probably more exaggeration than reality."

Natalie's mouth made a little 'o' shape with a short nod. "I see. I'll be sure to keep that in mind the next time I talk to him."

"You talk?" She didn't mean to sound so defensive. Really. She didn't. It just came out that way. They weren't together or as close as Che and Silva, so realistically she shouldn't have sounded so jealous. 

"Oui. We talk about our family or what projects we're working on or dinner." She smiled, a small sly thing that told Wraith she fucked up. "Why? Do you want to be included next time?"

_Shooter. Move._

"Get behind cover!" Wraith called out before ducking behind a boulder, just in time to get her forearm nicked by a stray devotion bullet. She hissed in pain and pushed a syringe into her wrist. She looked at Natalie behind a couple of large cargo boxes. Her pylon was set up beside her, a white streak of electricity destroying the frag grenade thrown at her. "You okay?"

"Oui!" She answered quickly, peaking behind her cover to take a few shots at Bangalore and Silva. Fuck. "I hit them!"

"I'll flank around to get a better angle!" She took a deep breath, R-99 fully loaded, and fazed through the void to get behind the two. 

They seemed too preoccupied with Natalie to even notice the skirmisher creeping up behind them. She unloaded a clip into Silva's back, downing him in one go before swapping out for her wingman and taking quick shots at Bangalore. She missed a good chunk of her shots when the soldier popped her smoke grenades, the canister hitting Wraith's chest and knocking the wind out of her as she fell onto the ground.

_Danger._

Yeah, no shit. She rolled out of the way of another canister and was greeted with a back in action Silva. Damn. She went to portal back to Natalie and almost punched herself in frustration when she saw 97% energy instead. Silva laughed as he shot at her with his spitfire, barely using half his clip when she got downed. Double damn.

"Too slow, amiga." He cackled, raising his gun to unload the rest of his clip until he was quickly shot down by a triple take. Bangalore seemed shocked, but quickly shot back into action. She threw another grenade at the cargo boxes Natalie was camped in, but that white streak of electricity popped it out of the sky. 

"Poppin' the chimney!" Bangalore called out, going instead to revive her teammate instead of fighting Natalie. 

Wraith began crawling away, trying to help ping wherever Bangalore moved to, but she didn't need to. Natalie rushed in, her peacekeeper charged up and took a shot at Bangalore's head, finishing off the squad with a cheerful smile.

"That was the last one. Bye bye squad!" She clapped and little sparks of electricity sparked between them as she knelt down to revive Wraith. "Here, I have a phoenix kit for you."

"Thanks." She took a sigh of relief as she felt the meds heal her. "That was good. You did a good job."

She peaked over her shoulder, digging through Silva's box and smiled. "Merci. You fight well, too."

Natalie was smiling as the other Legends congratulated her on a win. Elliott making a face at Wraith as she walked towards him, but it quickly faded into a smile when he offered her a beer. She took it happily, taking a long, slow sip and watched Natalie happily chat with Crypto about boring tech stuff. 

"Good game." He tapped the lip of his bottle with Wraith's, his smile genuine and light. She liked it when he was alone with someone. The only time he wasn't Mirage and he could just be Elliott. "So, what'd you and Nat chat about while you two were finally alone?" 

And he ruined it.

"How super crazy hot you are." She feigned excitement and rolled her eyes at his middle finger. "Fuck off. We didn't talk about anything. We fought, we won."

"God, even the kid and I can make conversation." He nodded towards Crypto, who was typing away at his laptop on the couch. "You are paired with the human equivalent of a ray of sunshine and you can't even think of one thing to talk with her about? I call bullshit."

She paused, sparing a look at Natalie for what felt like the thousandth time that day. "We talked about the weather."

"The weather?"

"It was hot." He let out a snort of laughter, covering his mouth with his hand when he got a questioning look from the soldier.

"Oh, holy fuck that's funny." He wheezed out, wiping pretend tears out of his eyes. Wraith almost left then and there, but she's a good friend. No, the best friend. At least, the best friend Elliott could afford. "Ah, thanks for the laugh, Renee."

"Shut up." She pouted as he patted her shoulder and walked away. Whatever. She had better people to talk to. She sulked in a corner for the next ten minutes before deciding to go to her room to shower. She smelled like shit and needs to nurse her bruising chest.

She stood in front of a full body mirror with atowel around her shoulders. The yellow and purple bruise from the smoke canister was large and looked almost like a stain between her tits. If she were a different person she might've laughed at it. Instead she reached up and pressed her index and middle finger into the bruise until it hurt. The knock at her door made her rush to throw on a sweatshirt over her exposed chest and pulling on gym shorts she discarded to the floor that morning before opening the door and greeting Natalie.

"Sorry, is this a bad time?" She had a slice of cake on a small paper plate. "Elliott said he forgot to offer you some before you left and asked me to take it to you."

"Did he now?" She accepted the cake, gesturing to Natalie that she's welcome to come in as she rummaged through the kitchenette that's really only a fridge, some counter space and cabinets with a microwave and sink. It wasn't the best for making meals, thus the nightly dinners that all the Legends share together. Between Makoa and Elliott's cooking, no one opts out of the dinner unless you're Crypto and a social recluse. "You should thank him for me."

"Oh, of course." She stood awkwardly in the middle of Wraith's room. It was a stark contrast to her own. Messy, the curtains drawn tight and clothes were thrown all over the floor. She expected this kind of room from Elliott, not Wraith.

Wraith leaned her back against the counter as she ate a piece of the cake. It was double chocolate. Elliott must've made it. The trickster had one helluva sweet tooth. Wraith felt one of her back molars ache, a reminder of who she was. It was a hole in one of her back molars that made eating sweets hurt like hell. Che said it looked like a root canal and that Renee Blasey must've had a problem taking care of herself.

Wraith rubbed at her cheek instinctively and places the cake on the counter behind her before going for a bottle of water. "Sorry, sugar and I don't get along."

"Oh, I'm so sorry! I-"

"Not your fault." Wraith shrugged, downing half the bottle before sighing with relief at her soothed tooth. "Um, I'll see you tomorrow then? For the post-match Q and A thing?"

"Yes, yes, you will." She paused, biting the inside of her cheek. "Good night, then."

"Good night." Wraith felt herself smile as she walked Natalie out. "Sleep well, 'kay?"

"Mm, sweet dreams, Wraith."

Wraith closed the door and looked to the kitchenette. She finished off the cake.


	2. Late Night?

Wraith had to refrain herself from stabbing this poor makeup artist with her fork. Alternatively, she instead stabbed at the 'Southwestern' salad they gave her for lunch before the Q and A. Natalie was chatting up her artist, a bright smile on her face and her bangs pulled back. Wraith knew the more she just ignored this poor, probably underpaid, makeup artist, the sooner she'd probably just leave her alone out of pure exhaustion. Ajay was beside her, gently pressing a beauty blender onto a black eye, wincing every so often with a too harsh press to her eye.

"They can 'eal bullet wounds and broken bones, but God forbid they fix a black eye!" She had exclaimed when she walked out of medbay the night before. Honestly, she had a point, but after sleeping on it and receiving her paycheck for placing second in the match, she was a bit more complacent. Hell, with enough money, Wraith herself supposed she may or may not conveniently forget about the inhumane tests she was put through. But just maybe.

"Miss Wraith? Miss Wattson?" A timid girl, probably a summer intern, called into the room with a smile. "They're ready for you now."

"Thanks." Wraith deadpanned, throwing her unfinished salad in the trash on her way to the interview room. 

Natalie looked amazing compared to her. Her hood was down, only putting it up once the cameras were in view. She put on a smile and waved while Wraith trailed behind with her usual flat expression. The interviewer had a faker smile than Natalie. He gestured for the two to sit on the stiff foldable chairs with the Apex logo printed on the backs.

"Wraith and Wattson, an unlikely duo." Wraith wanted to hurl. "You two are the most different Legends in the roster. What we want to know is, are you two as friendly out of the arena as you are in it?"

"I like to think so." Natalie smiled, her hands folded in her lap, her fingers scratching at her gloves. "I try to be friendly with everyone, even Dr. Caustic."

"Do you feel the same Wraith?" His voice was grating. Too TV game show host and not really human.

"Wattson's nice to me." She began, speaking slowly and trying to not look at Natalie. "I like working with her."

His smile faltered for a split second. "Yes, but I asked about out of the arena. Do you not think she's as good a friend as she is a coworker?"

"She is my friend." Wraith clenched her hands into fists at her sides. "I thought we were here about winning yesterday's match and not our personal affairs with each other."

"What affairs do you two have?" Wraith could see Natalie's blush in her peripheral. The voidwalker almost pounced the man for asking something so invasive, but she knows that's just how some people are. She takes a deep breath and exhales through her nose.

"Our personal lives should be separate from our work." She reiterated, hiding what she could of her red face in her scarf. 

The rest of the interview went about the same way. Pointless questions about any trysts between the Legends and what Legend is their least favorite to work with and so on. Honestly, why did she even come to this thing? She could've faked sick or just not shown up at all. Lying in her room, catching up on the sleep she barely gets enough of, but no. She had to be nice and join Natalie in this stupid bullshit.

"So, tell me, is there anyone you particularly like working with, Wattson?" Renee felt the electrician's eyes dart to her for a split second before humming, considering her options. "Well, I do enjoy working with Octane and Mirage, but Wraith is a good friend and tries her best to protect me on the field. Her kit is so helpful." She paused with a forced laugh. "If I had to choose, I'd say Wraith."

"Sounds like you like her a lot." He laughed.

"Oui. She's a close friend and has been since I joined." She was fully looking at Wraith now. "I'm glad we are."

Fuck. Fuck. Fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck.

"So, are you gonna sit or keep pacing?" Elliott asked, a slight twinge of concern to his voice as he watched his friend pace his room without speaking. "Or maybe talk? Like, at all?"

"I don't want to talk." She rolled her eyes, flexing her hands as she paced back and forth, listening to the pop of her finger's joints. If she continued any longer she might start making a hole in Elliott's floor. He knew better than to ask if she wanted to talk about what's bothering her like she's some soft hearted baby. Her stomach growled. She hadn't eaten since the interview and that was hours ago. "I could eat."

They went to the Strip, the Apex ship gathering a small crowd, but Wraith was more concerned with her veggie burger. Elliott watched her eat with a frown. It looked weird and foreign on his usually cheerful face. She tried to ignore it.

"I don't..." She began, but didn't know where she wanted the words to go. Elliott cocked his head and waited. He was nothing if not patient. It's a virtue not many people think he had. She took a breath, held it in for a bit too long than socially acceptable, and exhaled. Those jitters from before were calmed down now. "I gotta piss."

"Bathroom's over there." He didn't point in any one direction, but they were sitting right next to a public toilet. 

Wraith scrunched up her face in disgust. "I'd rather go back to the ship."

"Ah, yes. Where our ador- adror- loving fans await us." She sighed dramatically and stood with her burger foil crushed in her fist and threw it away as she went to the toilets.

Wraith stared angrily at the crotch of her underwear as she peed, more frustrated with herself than her underwear. She's not nice. She's not a good friend. She isn't even a good person. She's decent at best and that decent is barely above board.Why the fucking shit would Natalie ever call her a good, close, nice friend? She's not.

She stared angrily at the toilet bowl with the slow whirlpool of toilet water and piss going with it. "Fuck me!" She hissed and kicked the shit out of the toilet with her boot, really only hurting herself. 

"Um, are you okay?" The high pitched voice of a child was beside her in the next stall. Wraith mentally kicked herself. 

"Yeah, thanks." She left after washing her hands and rejoined Elliott just in time to hear him ending a call with Silva.

"Yeah, I'll see ya when we get back." He paused with a little smile. "Yeah, yeah, no shenanigans without ya. Bye, weirdo."

"No shenanigans?" She was ready to tease him, usually she would've, but wasn't in the mood. "Shame. I had a whole bunch of shenanigans planned."

"Really?" He chuckled, looking at her fully now. "Like what?"

"Maybe arson?" She shrugged. "Dunno. Hadn't planned it that far."

He laughed. "I think we're too old for arson."

"We're thirty." She deadpanned, kicking a can to Elliott's foot. He didn't kick it back. "Not that old."

"Old enough to not commit arson." He was good at arguing. He actually grew up in a family that argued a lot. "Are you okay?" He had a straight face. Not giving away anything to her. "You've been weird all day. Not your usual weird, either."

"I'm fine."

"I'm worried." He put his hand on her shoulder and looked at her with a frown. "You sure you're okay?"

"Yeah, yeah I'm sure."

She wasn't. Sure, that is. She figured that out when she was in the kitchen at three a.m. eating pickles that she dipped in chocolate. It was unbearably gross and she doesn't know why she kept eating them when eat one made her want to barf, but she did. Honestly, it was better than popping rubber bands on her arms and legs.

_Behind you._

She turned, hand on her kunai instinctively. But it was only Natalie. Her hair was disheveled and was wearing her jumpsuit. She looked amazing still. How was that possible?

"Rough night?" She asked around a mouthful of pickle and chocolate. She couldn't have chosen a more  _normal_ snack choice?

Natalie jumped, laughing at herself softly when she noticed Wraith. "Oh, um, no, I-I just-" She cut herself off with a sigh and sat at the breakfast bar beside Wraith. "Yes. I suppose."

Wraith swallows a pit in her throat and looked fully at Natalie. "I'm here to talk whenever you need me to be." The blonde looked at her blankly, sleep clear in her eyes. "Serious."

"That means a lot to me," a pause. "But you don't need to just because of what I said earlier. Er, yesterday?" She shook her head. "I don't know if you think of me as a friend. You don't have to."

"I know," Wraith felt herself smile. Fully smile, teeth and all. "I'd like to be, though."

A tired smile and a soft, scarred hand fell over Wraith's. "I'd love to."


	3. Hot

Wraith huffed and panted as she glared down at Elliott, his fists raised to protect his face and was too heavy footed. These workouts were always fun for Wraith. An excuse to be able to beat the shit out of her friends and have them do the same unto her. She was quicker than he was though. She darted behind him, sending quick jabs up his spine and a swift swipe to knock him off his feet.

She smiled as she stood over him, blowing the loose hair that fell out of her bun. She held out her hand to help him up. "You're getting better. You lasted, what? Five seconds?"

"Ha ha, go fuck yourself." He accepted the help though, wiping the sweat off his forehead with his hand and promptly rubbing it off on Wraith's bicep.

"Ew!" She exclaimed, lightly shoving him away. "You're disgusting!"

"I am a man." He said this as if that was an excuse. Well, she guessed it was. He slouched down on the small bleachers in the training room, draping his arm around Octavio's shoulders. "We're naturally disgusting. It's a sad truth you need to face, Wraith."

She rolled her eyes, graciously accepting the towel Natalie offered. Her water bottle was more lukewarm with the heat of the room, but water's water. Her eyes scanned the room, seeing Makoa on the bench with a bored Crypto checking him. Wraith is pretty sure she's never actually seen him workout and it was actually pretty funny watching him occasionally glance up from his phone to see if Makoa was still breathing. Bangalore was beating the shit out of a punching bag with Che as her spotter. It was nice to have some free time to be together like this, except for Bloth who was busy buying feed for their bird and Caustic who was just an ass. Why Natalie liked him so much baffling.

"Well, I should get back to work." Natalie stood, carefully stepping over Wraith's gym bag. It didn't really have anything in it. A personalized water bottle from the Syndicate that she was given when she agreed to join their games, a pair of extra sneakers, and a knife. She doesn't remember putting that there, but someone must have. "Have fun punching Elliott, Wraith."

"Nah, it stops being fun after the hundredth time." She stood, wiping the sweat off her chest and under her arms as she did. "I'll go with you." 

She grabbed her bag and jogged ahead of the electrician to hold the door open for her. The rest of the ship was usually cold and that was especially true after a long morning of beating the shit out of Elliott. Her skin prickled with the chill of the AC blowing on her, enough to the point that Natalie noticed. She shrugged off the light windbreaker she had on and held it out for Wraith. 

"Oh, uh, n-no, thanks, I'm fine." Natalie rolled her eyes and draped the jacket around Wraith's shoulders.

"It's just a jacket, Wraith." Her voice was light as she walked away, beginning to talk about what she wanted for lunch, but Wraith wasn't listening. Not really anyway. She got the gist of 'craving crepes.'

She clutched the jacket's material in her hands; her face felt warm. She swallowed something down and kept walking. Her heartbeat was loud in her ears and was wondering if Natalie could hear it where she was. This was probably nothing. She experienced nice things all the time. Like, when Che bought her those pink pig slippers. Or when Elliott gave her free drinks at the bar. Or, or, uh.... She's blanking but she's sure there's others.

Okay so there isn't any others. But whatever. She only has, like, three friends, including Natalie. That doesn't matter now though, because she's staring at Natalie's back as she's elbow deep in her fencing tech and somehow managing to not electrify herself as she carries the conversation. The girls had been hidden away in Natalie's room for the better part of the afternoon.

Wraith found herself liking Natalie's room more than her own. Whatever houseplants she had were all bright green and lively instead of just brown and wimpy stems. Her sink wasn't full of dirty dishes from months ago. A candle was lit in the coffee table that made the entire room smell like flowers. The only thing untidy was a wall covered in schematics in the corner, her desk that was littered with her tech, and a stray coffee mug from that morning half-full of cold coffee.

Wraith was sitting on the couch with her knees pulled up to her chest with the TV playing highlights of the season so far. One of which was a squad wipe with a single frag grenade that Elliott had thrown on a whim and almost pissed himself laughing when it happened. On the receiving end, Che and Bloth didn't find it so funny and Elliott spent the next two weeks waking up at dawn just to make the both of them gourmet breakfast in apology.

"So, me and my papa ended up spending the entire day at the city jail!" She ended with a laugh, half-turning to look at Wraith with a slight smile. "Are you still cold?"

"Huh?" She looked up to meet Natalie's eyes.

"The jacket? You are still wearing it." She looked smug. It was a good look on her. Wraith began taking it off, apologizing for not giving it back sooner, but Natalie only giggled in response. That made Wraith stop for a moment, her heart thumping in her chest. "Non, you keep it. Consider it a gift."  Natalie yawned, stretching her arms over her head and sighed. "I'm going to change if that's okay with you."

"Yeah, sure, I can-" She stopped herself when she saw Natalie standing beside her with her sweater half-way off her body. Wraith's words and thoughts found themselves stuck somewhere in her stomach and quickly stood up when the sweater came fully off. "Uh, I-I gotta go. See ya later, Nat."

"O-Oh, okay!" Wraith didn't wait to hear if Natalie had anything more to say.

Wraith had her eyes squeezed shut and wondered if it was normal to casually masturbate to thoughts of your good, close friend. It must be. If it's normal for guys to circle jerk together than it must be okay for her to casually come to the thought of seeing Natalie's boobs for the first time. Her toes curled into the blankets beneath her as she scissored deeper into herself.

This is creepy. A part of her can't help but think how weirded out Natalie would be if she found out that the friend she trusted enough to change in front of was knuckle deep in her own cunt right now. She can't lie to herself, not when there must be a million versions of herself that are either doing the same thing or are just ignoring the urges all together. 

She doesn't know what she was into or like before the tests, but she knows now that she has never found a man as interesting as Natalie. Who knows. Maybe she had a wife or girlfriend that looked and acted like Natalie, but that doesn't matter so much as how tangible and  _here_ Natalie is. More importantly, how there she is for Wraith.

She gasped and came onto her hand to the thought of getting a good nights rest after Natalie thoroughly fucked her. Oh, yeah, in her fantasy she does nothing; a pillow princess. For once, not a single worry but be cared for. It's a nice thought and she decided to take a shower.

Her face looked foreign. She glared at her own reflection, at the bags under her eyes and her pale eyes. She saw a picture of herself, Renee Blasey, once. A serious woman with shiny hair and dark eyes and glowing skin. The woman staring back at her is not Renee Blasey. Her hair was now greasy and damaged. Her skin wasn't glowing. Her eyes were dead. She was a husk. She took a deep breath and grabbed her kunai. She raised it to her face with a tight-lipped frown.

"Time to meet your doom."


	4. Short

Elliott stared at her all breakfast. She ignored it and instead stared deep into her coffee and the avocado toast he had made her earlier. She already got the fake compliments from PR, she doesn't need it from her friends.

"Wow, Wraith, I like your new haircut!" Pathfinder was, at least, as honest as ever. His screen lit up with a smile as he grabbed an empty mug and sat beside her at the table. Elliott suppressed a groan. Wraith thought it was sort of cute how he pretended to eat and drink with them. "When did you get it?"

"Last night, Path." She reached up instinctively, but realized she didn't have her hair up anymore. Instead, a short bob that fell just above her shoulders was her usual do now. It was her first step to being Wraith, not some stranger named Renee. "I think I needed a change."

"Well, nice change then." Elliott added, shoving a little over half of his toast into his mouth to finish his breakfast. "See you in the arena?"

"Yeah, see ya." She waved him off as he walked away, presumably to mess around with his gear before the match that afternoon.

She fiddled with her hair, letting the freshly cut strands run through her fingers. It was weird - having short hair. It wasn't like the last time she did, when it grew in patchy and uneven from being forcibly shaved off. It was cathartic, maybe? Like, finally taking a step to get over her trauma or something. Che, the designated therapist, would be proud of her steps towards mental wellness.

"Have you seen Nat anywhere?" She tried to sound nonchalant, but it came out more needy than she meant to.

"She had a very important meeting, but she'll be here before the match starts!" Pathfinder, as much of a joy he is to be around, was obnoxiously loud for eight in the morning. His screen flashed a question mark. "You seem upset by this, friend!"

"Huh? N-No, I'm not." She stammered, the act unfamiliar in her voice. Usually Elliott was one stumbling over his words. She cleared her throat. "I'm not." A pause. "Don't tell Natalie."

"Okay, friend!" He held out his hand for a high five. She blinked before hesitantly high-fiving him. He clapped his hands together happily. She couldn't help but laugh at him.

Wraith stood and gently knocked against his screen. "See you in the arena, Path."

"I'm the Jumpmaster. This time." Wraith muttered to herself, scanning over World's Edge with pursed lips. Elliott and Crypto were her teammates this time. "Hmm, Epi's hot spot and I'd like to last longer than four minutes this time."

"Hey, how was I supposed to know they had a gold Hemlock?" Elliott shrugged, looking down at the arena as well. "How 'bout Lava City? Seems far enough we won't need to worry about half the lobby coming after us, but close enough to get a good fight goin'."

Wraith looked to Crypto for his opinion, but she should've known that he would've agreed with whatever Elliott said. Fine. She jumped bobbing in and out of a dive with Elliott and Crypto beside her. Wraith opened a blue supply bin and came out with two P2020s.

"Ah, the ol' P4040." Elliott teased, laughing at his own joke. "Oh, God, it's hard being this funny."

"Shut up, Mirage." Crypto groaned through the comms. "We don't have time for your bad jokes."

"Okay, but you gotta admit that was funny." He followed her down the stairs, racing ahead a bit to grab a stack of energy ammo for his charge rifle. "It was funny, right?"

"No." Wraith answered picking up a blue shield and replacing one of her P2020s with a havoc. Crypto pinged a hammerpoint hop up that she reluctantly accepted. 

"Joshimaja, one squad nearby. We have the drop." He scanned his drone over the City, stopping over the train depot. He got three hits. "We could rush in, but you won't have my EMP to help."

"Bah, we don't need no EMP." Elliott jumped down from the second floor balcony and onto the ground, Wraith came in behind him. "Alright, I'll rush in on top and you two take the bottom."

"Is that supposed to be a joke about how you're a top?" Wraith rolled her eyes, but listened to him anyway, going in from the left while Crypto went in the right.

"Shit, fences." Elliott's voice warbled through their comms as he hit one of the fences.

"Somebody has to lose. That's just how this goes." Is all Wraith hears as she's downed.


	5. Paradise

"Ow, can you be more gentle?" Wraith hissed, trying her best to pull her arm out of Ajay's grasp. The medic was good at her job, but goddamn if she wasn't the most gentle at it.

"Quit movin' 'fore I just chop off the damn thing." Ajay's threat was empty, but seeing the huge bone saw on the table beside her was enough to make Wraith stop.

Her arm burned with the antiseptic and shotgun pellets stuck in her arm. Mozambique's hit hard enough after matches, something every Legend can attest to after their first few matches. Ajay said she was lucky it wasn't to the face. The face is a lot harder to work around. 

"Nat hit ya pretty hard, huh?" She winced, pulling another pellet out with her tweezers. The metallic clang of it dropping onto an alcohol-filled dish rang through the med bay. Elliott was beside her being treated by D.O.C. for some minor burn wounds from Natalie's fences.

"She's a good shot." Wraith answered simply. She wondered what Natalie was doing now. Did she fee bad or proud pf herself for not letting their blossoming friendship get in the way of the Games? Maybe it was payback for Wraith being weird the day before. Who knows. She'll seek her out later, but now she had to bite back a series of crude remarks as Ajay pulled out more pellets. "How much longer?"

"Don't be a baby." Ajay teased, but her movements were a bit more gentle. "Forgot to tell ya, I like tha hair."

Elliott looked at her fully, waiting for a reaction of some sort. Wraith did this for herself, one of many things she did for herself, but this was the first positive. Her good hand brushed the short bangs out of her face. She only thanked Ajay and let the medic finish her job.

"Ya know, I never see ya out wit us when were celebratin' a win." She began, glancing over at Elliott.

Wraith scoffed. "Yeah, the Lounge isn't exactly my scene, Che."

Ajay laughed, a big and hearty thing. Wraith thought she laughed to loud to compensate for something, what that was she didn't know. "What? Not grunge enough for ya?" She had a point. "C'mon, even Nat agreed to come."

"Natalie's coming?" Elliott hid a laugh by coughing into his fist, but that smug grin was still there. "Uh, I-I might be able to make an appearance. Maybe."

Elliott's bare was always full of fangirls and fanboys. People who travelled from far and wide to get the chance to see the Legends relax and unwind. Bangalore - Anita - would always challenge Makoa to a drinking contest with Elliott eventually having to stop them once they exceed six shots of Witt's Whiskey. 

Crypto, to everyone's surprise, actually frequented the bar. He told everyone once that he actually went a lot before he joined the Games, but Elliott said he'd remember a face like Crypto's and then proceeded to assure everyone it's not because of his attractiveness.

Natalie almost never went. If she did, she would sit in a quiet corner with Nox and Crypto, the two technicians trading new ideas and sharing stories of their childhood while Nox silently listened. But now, she sat beside Wraith at the bar nursing some fruity drink that looked hot pink in the light.

"How is your arm?" Natalie asked running a finger along the lip of her glass. 

"Fine, it'll be better once I get some rest." Wraith herself had a glass of Elliott's whiskey. Say what you want about the man, but he can make one hell of a whiskey. "So, naturally, I came here." Cue the guys who are sitting around a booth beside them giving the girls bedroom eyes. "What's a few horny guys to help a girl relax?"

"If you're into that." Natalie remarked, a wave of her hand dismissively towards the men as she takes a drink. Wraith was sure she had a heart attack, looking around for Elliott as confirmation for what she just heard. The damn idiot was over on the other side of the bar flirting with Octavio with his decoys tending bar. Fucker.

"What? Not a fan of one night stands?" She tried, hoping that wasn't what Natalie was talking about.

"Non,  _men_ ." She said the word with such venom it made Wraith chuckle. "They are loud, gross, and can be so cruel." She paused, staring wistfully into her drink. "Not women though."

"What's special about women?" She wanted to ask about herself. What Natalie saw in her that was so special and worthwhile.

"They're smart, clever," she smiled. "Softer, but more ferocious because of it. They are so many things." She paused with a chuckle. "I think I'm just describing my friends now, Wraith."

She spoke without thinking. "Renee." Natalie looked up in surprise, her breathing faltered for a moment. "My name. It's Renee." She paused, not breathing. "You can call me Renee."

"Well, hello Renee." Natalie's smile lit up the whole bar, or maybe that was just the alcohol finally working. "I must be special to be allowed to refer to you by your name."

"Yeah, you're my best friend." Wraith took a long look into the brown liquor and felt herself actually smile. "Hey, Witt! Two more drinks for the ladies!"


	6. Match Set

Wraith realized her friendship with Natalie turned into something more when she decided to dive herself onto a grenade for the girl. It hurt like a bitch and she had about one hit point left until she was knocked, but at least Natalie and Elliott were fending for themselves well enough against a group of tryhard newcomers. That grenade made them cocky, running right into a house full of decoys and fences with peacekeeper wielding engineers.

When the dust settled and Wraith was elbow deep in a death box, Elliott knelt down beside her and grabbed some energy ammo with a frown.

"Pretty stupid of you to jump on that 'nade." He spoke lowly; Natalie either not listening or pretending not to. "She would've been fine."

"Not now." She went to stand, to leave, but Elliott's hand caught her wrist and pulled her back down.

"Don't start acting like an idiot." He wasn't being mean. He knew why she fought in these games and why she put herself through this. He was right. She should just ignore how she felt about Natalie, but she just couldn't. If she were anyone else or this was another road, maybe but she really doubts it. He let her go with a sigh. "Renee, I'm your friend too."

"Ell-" He raised his hand with a flat expression.

"Just... Don't forget to take care of yourself, okay?" She blinked dumbly. "Jesus, man, just... just don't ignore your own worth just because of someone else, 'kay? It sucks to see you all self-sacrificing because of Nat."

"I'm fine." 

"Are you?"

"Yes." She pushed past him and went out of the small hut to get some air. Not soon after, she felt eyes on her, but no warnings. She looked around and saw another Natalie, well a Wattson, staring down at her from the caves that bled to the Meat Market.

A trick the Games use. Sort of more solid decoys that Elliott and Natalie worked on together. She's fought versions of herself that seem more robot than human and a Voidwalker once, an old memory she didn't know the Syndicate had access to. It probably wasn't good that there were no warnings.

"Really?" Tae Joon asked around a mouthful of noodles. "You got nothing?"

"That's what I said." She didn't know why she asked him to talk of all people. She would've asked Hound, but they would've been worried and told Elliott. At least with the new guy she doesn't have to worry about him telling anyone. Some sort of hacker's oath. Don't tell anyone anything ever. "I get warnings from everyone, even Witt, but I got nothing from her."

"Interesting."

"That's all you have to say?" He quirked a brow at her.

"You didn't come to me for comfort, Blasey." He had a point. No one goes to him for comfort. Cold truths usually. "You read your file. Nothing like that happened before?"

Yes, it had. The voices quieted themselves when that other version of herself saved her life. It was horrifying. The usual cacophony of voices as that orderly neared her, then just silence. 

"Only with myself," she paused. "But they have to real other versions of me."

"Ah, I see." He ate more noodles. "They have to be real yous for the voices to feel safe."

"I feel safe with Natalie." She spoke without thinking again. 

"Safe enough to tell her your name." It wasn't a question, and he had that annoying blank stare that she couldn't read. "Did you tell anyone else?"

"Fuck no." She drank what was left of her Red Bull before tossing the can into the garbage bin behind them. "I came to you because you know how to keep secrets."

His face fell. "I care about Natalie. If she asks me about what we talked about, I won't lie to her."

She understood. Lying to her is like kicking a puppy. "Goodnight, Park."

"Yeah."

The next morning Natalie didn't show up for breakfast. When she asked Elliott and Tae Joon about it, the two simply said she wanted to eat in her workshop. 

"Something about the tower." Elliott finished, holding out a plate of whipped creme covered crepes to Wraith. "Mind taking this to her for me? I'm kinda busy."

"Yeah, sure."

The walk to Natalie's workshop was a careful one. She didn't want to risk ruining Natalie's favorite breakfast just because she was being careless. Her workshop was with the rest of the Legends in the lower part of the ship. It was also the one place you could get any real privacy from the Syndicate.

"Hey, Nat?" She called as she took each step carefully. 

"Oui?" She leaned back from the stool she was sitting on, goggles pulled up to her forehead to look at Wraith. She waved her over with a smile. Natalie graciously took the crepes and took a rather large bite out of the pancake. "Bonjour, Renee. How did you sleep?"

"Fine." She shrugged and stood a little too close to Natalie than she probably should. "What are you working on?"

Schematics of the Repulsor Tower were scattered over Natalie's table. Weak points highlighted and circled and scribbles in French covered the pages.

"I've been trying to figure out how the Tower was blown up." She sounded tired just talking about it. "I've asked Hyeun for help, but he's busy with his own mystery."

"I'd offer to help, but I don't know anything about engineering." Natalie chuckled.

"Ça va, don't worry about it." She paused and then shot up with a bright grin, grabbing Wraith's hands in her own. "We should go out tonight. Just us."

"Like-"

"A girl's night, but the two of us." Wraith tried not to look too dejected. "We barely spend time together alone. Let's do it."

"Sounds awesome." If Wraith tried hard enough, maybe she could just be friends with Natalie.


	7. Just Us Girls

Wraith actually had an apartment on Solace. She lived alone aside from the same stray cat, Jin, that came by every so often for food and a somewhere warm and dry to sleep. It was cleaner than her room on the dropship, but it was more bland. Not as much personality. Natalie didn't seem to care at all, however, as she started placing the Chinese takeout and array of snacks and alcohol on her coffee table.

Natalie kicked off her sneakers at the door and stuffed her mouth with fried rice and shrimp. She was messing with Wraith's TV, flipping through various streaming services before settling on an HBO horror movie marathon. Wraith sat down beside her after she changed out of her jeans and into shorts. The moment she sat down beside Natalie, the blonde kicked her feet up across her lap. Wraith suppressed a laugh when she saw the patented Wattson socks. They had cartoonish Wattson faces with little orange lightning bolts in the background. Each Legend had the same basic merch, but Natalie's was always made cuter and more bright than the others. Even Ajay and Octavio.

"Love the socks." She teased, shoving noodles and vegetables into her mouth. 

Natalie lightly kicked her arm with her toe. "Pardon, but who bought the food?"

"Touché, Nat." Wraith started paying attention to the movie just as the girl who is comfortable in her sexuality got murdered for having sex with someone. God, American horror movies were awful to women. "Call it. Who's final girl?"

"Laurie." Wraith nodded with a chuckle, reaching over to grab a beer. "I'll take one, cheri."

"Letting loose tonight?" Natalie rolled her eyes in response. "Need help opening it?"

"My papa actually taught me a little trick for opening bottles." She briefly went to the kitchen and came back with a knife. Wraith was going to ask her what she was doing, but curiosity got the better of her. Natalie smirked as she tapped the neck and then the body and with one quick final swipe to the top of the neck, the top of the neck came off with a clean cut. Natalie chuckled at Wraith's look of disbelief as she drank. "Cool, huh?"

"How the fuck.... Color me impressed, Paquette." Wraith clapped, one hand still holding the takeout carton. Natalie's legs returned to their spot on Wraith's lap. "You oughta teach me that one."

"Sorry cheri, that's my secret party trick." She winked. "Look, look! This is my favorite part!"

They fall into a comfortable silence as they watched Micheal Myers get his ass kicked by Laurie Strode. Honestly, this was one of Wraith's favorite horror franchises. She watched  Halloween  almost every weekend with Elliott and Path. Elliott was a little bitch and always hugged Wraith's arm the entire time. Natalie, however, kept making jokes. She laughed at how dumb the blood looks, how stupid it is to use a fucking carving knife as your weapon of choice, and why the hell would you choose babysitters of all people to murder and why not corrupt rich people? They're the ones who deserve it not teenaged girls being underpaid for dealing with little gremlins on Halloween.

"If you had to murder anyone, who would it be?" Natalie asked, Laurie's screams of anguish playing in the background. "And weapon of choice? It can not be your kunai."

Wraith had to think for a moment. "Um, men, obviously, and I would use my looks seduce men and then strangle them with piano wire. Very clean and inconspicuous."

"Oh, good choice." She giggled, eating another mouthful of rice. "I think I would target bad men who hurt women and use electricity."

"Then you can steal their girlfriends after they're dead, very smart." Natalie laughed at that. 

Wraith's eyes fell her to lips, and she was glad that Natalie was too busy gearing up for  Scream . She had never wanted to kiss her more than now. To be honest, she didn't know what compelled her so much in this moment to just lean over and kiss the hell out of Natalie. This alone time together was something new. Usually they always had someone watching or with them, the Syndicate or otherwise. 

But they were alone. It was just the two of them and they were having a great time and they were friends. They were friends. They were just friends.

And Renee loved her more than anything.


	8. Girlfriends?

Renee Blasey did once have a girlfriend. Her name was Viola. She was brilliant, kind, and one of the fiercest women she knew. Renee had broken things off right before she began the tests on herself. She hoped that would make things easier, but it only ended with Viola screaming and sobbing and throwing Renee's stuff out of the window of their fourth story apartment. Of course, Renee "Wraith" Blasey, the woman who fights and kills in the Apex Games, does not remember this woman.

Her thoughts are full, instead, of Natalie Paquette. The most brilliant woman on the Frontier. She was beautiful, kind, soft, and everything Renee needed in her new life. She loved this woman, but she didn't love her the same way. She wished she did; she wanted her to. She wanted to love her and be loved so badly. But Natalie didn't think of her that way, she was fine with it. She's accepted that. She's accepted a lot of things since that realization. Her name, her forgotten past, and Natalie never loving her back. She's fine now. She's so fine, in fact, that she has a girl's night with Nat every Friday and doesn't even think of kissing her anymore. Maybe holding her tenderly for a while, but that's just friends. 

"I want to be a baker." Renee stated while watching some baking show and watched a pretty blonde woman make an eclair. She shoved a spoonful of cookie dough into her mouth. The spoon was huge and she stole it from Elliott's cookware. She's pretty sure it was used for serving food or something, but it's her's now.

"Hm, do you know how to bake?" 

Renee shrugged. "I could always learn." Natalie nodded, taking the spoon from Renee and finishing off whatever was on the spoon before going into the tub for more. "What did you want to do? When you were younger, I mean."

"This." She looked at Renee intently as if sitting on Renee's couch eating cookie dough was her life plan. "I finished the ring and now I fight in my father's name. But making friends along the way is nice."

Renee found herself wanting to reach out and hold Natalie's hand. She wanted to do a lot with her. 

"Do you remember when you told me you liked girls?" Natalie nodded, not really paying attention. She had her attention primarily on the show and Renee was thankful. "Did you have a girlfriend before joining?"

That piqued her interest. Natalie turned to her with wide eyes and red cheeks.

"Um, n-non, not really." She chuckled awkwardly, grabbing her glass of wine from the side table with shaky hands. She took a large gulp of red wine. "There was a few girls, and unfortunately a man, but no one really serious. Not like...."

"Like who?" Renee edged closer, her thigh against Natalie's. Natalie chuckled, fussing with her bangs nervously.

"Y-You, I suppose." She laughed - at herself it seemed. "It's always been difficult for me to make friends, but it felt so easy with you." She chuckled to herself. "Everything feels easy with you, Renee." 

Renee smiled and took Natalie's hand, the one toying with her hair, and squeezed it tight.

"I think we should..." She trailed off trying to piece together what to say. "I don't know if you feel the same way, but I think we should go out. Together. Like, like, a, er-"

"A date?" Natalie finished with a hopeful glow. "Yes! Yes, yes, yes, I would to!" 

She pulled forwards to embrace Renee in a bone crushing hug. Just as quickly, she pulled back and slapped her hands against her thighs. She rocked herself with a smile.

"Are- Are you okay?" Natalie was still smiling, her hands occasionally clapping together and stayed slapping against her thighs.

"I'm fine. Just stimming." She explained simply. "I'm excited and stimming helps me calm down."

"Oh, good." Renee stayed in her spot on the couch. She didn't know what to do when someone stims like Natalie is, so she though it best to just let her do what she needs to do. "Do you want me to stay with you while you stim?"

"Non, if you have something to do you can go." She must've noticed Renee's hesitation. "I'm old enough to take care of myself when stimming."

In her mind, she was planning and plotting out their date while walking down to Elliott's room. She needed a seasoned dater to help her. Naturally, her first instinct was Ajay, but she was busy fixing D.O.C. Elliott was her second choice.

"Witt!" She knocked on the door and waited. The metallic sound of Octavio's legs stopped at the door. "Tavi, open up before I portal in!"

"Fine." He groaned from the other side, his bored expression greeting her when he finally opened up. "What's up, chica?" 

"Where's Ell?" She walked in, going to the kitchen to rummage through whatever leftovers Elliott had hidden in his fridge. "Need his help with a date."

"A date?" He was back to his hyperactive self. "With who? Is it Che? 'Cause you should know she doesn't put out on the first date and she always pays for dinner. But she's fun."

"Shut up, Tavi." She shoveled the chocolate mousse Elliott made into her mouth. "Where's Elliott? Too busy sleeping off whatever jerk session you two had?"

"No, Jesus, I was working, Renee." He came out of his bedroom with those thick gloves electricians use on his hands. "What do you want?"

"I have a date with Nat." She answered simply. "I don't know what to do on a date."

"What?" Octavio trailed on, laying down across the couch with a wide smile. "You're kidding, right? You've never had a date?"

"Well, I might have, but my brain is full of worms. So, you know." Elliott chuckled and put his hand on her shoulder.

"Come on, ol' Elliott'll help ya out."

Renee thought she looked ridiculous. She borrowed one of Octavio's suits, something he never wore before because it meant he had to wear pants with it, and honestly the top was too tight. She waited outside this pretty nice restaurant that Elliott recommended. Apparently, he knew the owner. She sighed, walking slowly in the waiting area while waiting for Natalie to arrive. Her shoes were Ajay's. This is the first time she's worn heels and Ajay had her walk around the medbay and help with her patients.

"Renee, you look amazing!" 

Natalie was breathtaking. Her hair was curled, she was wearing makeup, and her dress was amazing. Renee's tongue was cotton as she struggled to find the right words to compliment Natalie. All she could get out was: "Holy shit."

"I hope that's good." She chuckled, smoothing her dress down with a smile. She looked between herself and the hostess that was chatting away with another host. "Should we sit?"

"Yes, yes, we should."


End file.
